Panama: Our First International Trip Since Having a Baby
This blog post is not going to be anywhere nearly as well organized as the last—the difference being the aforementioned toddler who now takes up all of my time! Plus, we relied on a friend who has lived in and owned a travel agency in Panama for over 15 years. With his recommendations and mine combined, I feel like we really got to see a lot over the seven days we were there.
Orienting Yourself:
Panama is really easy to get to, especially from Atlanta. Delta has a direct flight and it’s about 3.5 hours. It’s still Eastern Time Zone and everything is in USD, making this a really easy transition. At the advice of our friend, we chose a hotel in Casco Viejo, the Old Town of Panama City because that is where most of the action is in the capital. It’s about a 20-minute ride from the airport.
Ideally, you’d spend 2 to 3 days in Casco and then move on to another part of the country (or do that in reverse). There’s not a ton to see in Casco, but there’s enough to keep you busy for a few days. You can also plan day trips from Old Town and any hotel should be able to help you figure out what’s manageable if you don’t have time to see the rest of the country. Panama is not unsafe, but you do need to have your wits about you. Ask the hotel for advice on boundaries in Old Town; it wasn’t immediately clear to me on foot when I would be entering an unsafe zone.
Panama City Hotels:
We stayed at Hotel La Compania. I’d stay here again in a heartbeat. It’s a converted convent that was recently acquired by Hyatt and there are several different wings, such as the French wing, the American wing, etc. Additionally, I loved the Sofitel right on the water of Old Town (so no beach), and the American Trade Hotel, one of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World.
Our hotel room the second time we stayed at Hotel La Compania (yes, we stayed there twice because it was easy and we had Hyatt points!)
One small tip: Panamanian service is not like American service, and I’m speaking from experience and from consulting with the experts. Should you be the type of person who relies heavily on hotel concierge to help you, you might find this frustrating. Use Namu Travel if you need an agent specializing in the country.
Panama City Restaurants:
Again, manage your expectations for service, although we found most hotel service to be absolutely fine.
By far, our best meal was at Fonda Lo Que Hay, which is walking distance from Hotel La Compania (which has great restaurants, by the way, and I say that as someone who almost never eats at hotel restaurants). Exceptional food, really fresh and inventive. I believe it translates to “whatever we have on hand,” so the menu is always changing. Ask to sit in the courtyard if you can. It was one of LATAM’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2022.
Just down the block is Casa Casco, one of the best rooftop bars in the city (another being at Hotel La Compania). Go at sunset before dinner.
Fonda Lo Que Hay, our best meal in Panama City
Another jewel-box option in Casco is La Pulperia for shared small plates. Just across the street is a chi-chi coffee shop called Sisu Coffee Studio if you need quick breakfast on the run, and there’s a pretty extensive pastry shop inside the Sofitel. For brunch, we tried Mahalo at Las Clementinas Hotel ( a nice independent option). I liked it, I only wish we could have sat in the garden which is the real draw.
We also made it to Maito, another of LATAM’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022, further out in an up-and-coming neighborhood. Sit outside if you can. The food was good, not too overwrought, but not on the level of some of the other LATAM 50 Best Restaurants we’ve eaten at. The service here was exceptional comparatively. A rideshare ride will cost you about $6 from Casco, btw. On that side of town is also Cantina del Tigre, a nice option with some of the best shrimp I’ve ever had.
Additional restaurant options we wanted to try but didn’t have time to:
Other Things to Do in Panama City
We had a guide show us around Panama City and explain a little to us about the history. I never made it over to the mall, unfortunately, which I was dying to do because I’m always fascinated by stores we have in America in other countries (what do they have at a Panamanian Zara? Life’s big questions). I also am hardcore into pillaging grocery stores while on vacation but we didn’t get to explore too much there, either.
Enough about my vacation habits—you’ll want to block off a decent portion of the day to go to the locks. Yes, you absolutely should go see the Panama Canal locks in action while you are there. You will think you don’t want to but you do. We went to the main locks close to town and timed it incorrectly; I’d again ask an expert on when to go so that you can actually see boats coming through. There’s also the Biomuseo, a Frank Gehry-designed museum celebrating biodiversity, the first of its kind in the world. Biomuseo is located on the causeway, which is a nice walk/run/bike. There are also places to pull over and watch the cargo ships as they float up to the locks.
Panama Things to Do Outside the City
In all, we did 4 nights in Panama City, 2 on either side of a trip to Isla Palenque (I was on assignment and needed to be flexible on dates, hence the breaking up of the visit). It was between Isla Palenque and Isla Secas, and I can’t say anything about Isla Secas since I didn’t see it but Isla Palenque was a dream.
Our casita at Isla Palenque
Most of these types are all-inclusive because they have to either import things or make them all on the island. For example, getting to Isla Palenque was a taxi ride to a plane to a van ride to a boat ride to a car ride but it was worth it. You really do get immersed in nature and get to experience all the natural beauty Panama has to offer. For Isla Palenque, three meals were provided daily, as well as expeditions like kayaking. I think the snorkeling half day trip was extra. There were miles of walking trails, swimming, cocktail classes, etc. I slept a decent amount, too, and managed to finish a season of Gossip Girl I started on the plane. In short, do what you want, including nothing.
There are tons of these resorts you can research if you have a little more time in Panama. We decided to stay away from Bocas del Toro based on some reviews we had about it being a party place and it being hard to find places to eat, and we nixed San Blas because there is no running electricity. I’m good without a hair dryer and stuff, but I do need wifi.
On our last full day back in Panama City we hired a driver to take us to the Caribbean side. It’s not a quick trip; I think it was like 2 hours there and back maybe? But we enjoyed it. We went to see the Miraflores locks where we did actually see boats making it through the Canal. Totally nuts! We also explored some tiny little towns and ate lunch with our non-English speaking driver at some fish shack. All in all, a solid day.